Hello everyone! This week we have articles on fan translations, unauthorized sequels, and “the people’s boy band,” aka Boy Throb (Darshan got his visa!!), plus Vampire Lestat coverage on both of our respective podcasts. On the fanworks side, we’ve got Murderbot fanart and a multifandom grab-bag of fic recs! — Elizabeth

new stuff

“Fan Translations Still Are Being Done The Hard Way” by Chris Person at Aftermath
This longread explores a group of fan-run projects translating vintage videogames into English, detailing the complexity of the task at hand—and recommending some key titles in the process.

“Copyright Is for Suckers: A Brief History of Unofficial Movie Sequels” by Katie Rife at Indiewire
A fascinating piece on unauthorized sequels—an art form with a rich history, especially in the Italian film industry.

“Everybody Loves Big Boy” by Noelle Mateer at Defector
“My name is Noelle, and I’m a fan of the world’s largest operating steam locomotive. I used to think this was a unique fact about me. But recently our tiny fandom has exploded.”

just starting to spuriously refer to “the one day a year [whatever] is legal”. my daughter asked if there was popcorn left and i said we had to wait for next year when it was legal to buy again. my husband is mad but luckily last month was the day divorce is legal

— sixpenceee none the richer (@kagredon.bsky.social) August 8, 2026 at 8:15 PM

new stuff: fansplaining

“How Boy Throb and Its Fandom Got Famous—and Got a Visa” by Kayti Burt
Boy Throb—the pink-sweatsuited, *NSYNC-esque foursome you may have seen on TikTok or Instagram in recent months—has made getting one of their members, Darshan Magdum, a U.S. work visa a core part of their narrative. Last week, Darshan announced that he got it! In this piece, Kayti Burt reports on the band and their fans, for whom the immigration angle has been a core part of the draw, and who’ve felt like a small part of the process via their support.

And TVL fans! You can listen to Gav in two different (lengthy) podcasts this weekend:

• Fansplaining’s August special episode, where she joins Elizabeth and Flourish to talk about a wide range of topics around the season
• Overinvested’s review of episodes 4-7 with her co-host Claire

if they're drinking nounwine it's fantasy. if they're snorting a verb it's sci fi

— lauren (@lauren.rotatingsandwiches.com) August 9, 2026 at 3:39 PM

older stuff

“The ghost in my Netflix account” by Jen Deaderick at Experience Magazine
Jen Deaderick’s child asked to share their Netflix login info with an actor from Riverdale. What happened next will, as they say, surprise you.

tumblr & beyond

Murderbot fanart by its-jesster

“Robert Pattinson was tragically born too late to be a queer-coded antagonist in 1930s swashbucklers”

ao3 opening fascinating new vistas of fingering options

betaverse AU

“Personally love the Idea that most of star trek is reconstructed from personal logs.”

unfriendly reminder

fanfiction

We’ve got a grab-bag this week! Thanks to everyone who sent in a rec. — Elizabeth

“Obeisance” by casspeach. 5.8K words, rated PG-13.
Fandom: Merlin; Ship: Arthur/Merlin
Recced by: sainatsukino
Backstory: Merlin was a BBC show about King Arthur and Merlin, in which they were both the same age and also magic was illegal in Camelot and therefore Merlin had to hide his while being Arthur’s manservant. There was a lot (a LOT) of subtext and much shipping ensued. In this fic, Merlin has to attend to another noble for a few days and when he comes back, he’s been beaten so Arthur calls a duel to defend his honour.
Rec: This fanfic is very sweet and I love the chemistry that the author has managed to inject between the two characters.
Content warnings: Mention of someone being flogged, otherwise it’s a very tame fic

“Kings of the Dogpound” by amorphine. 8K words (with a 26K sequel), rated Explicit.
Fandom: Ateez (Band); Ship: Choi San/Jung Wooyoung
Recced by: Kas
Backstory: This story is based on the fictional universe of the music video for the song ‘Bouncy’ by K-Pop group Ateez. The character portrayed by Choi San is an underground ring fighter who is utterly devoted to his exploitative manager Jung Wooyoung.
Rec: This story and its much longer sequel ‘Far From Salvation’ is THE fic in the fandom when it comes to yearning. The violence of the deadly fighting rings and the seedy underbelly of Seoul is gorgeously contrasted with tenderness, slowly healing old wounds and aching love.
Content warnings: Graphic depictions of violence, sexual abuse trauma, drug use, minor character death, human trafficking (this fic is not a Dead Dove, it just deals with very dark themes)

“a variable star” by twigcollins. 273K words (WIP), rated Teen.
Fandom: Star Wars; Ship: Gen
Recced by: Posher10
Backstory: Instead of Jaster Meerel dying at Korda VI, Jango Fett is captured and set to be interrogated by a dark sider working for Death Watch against his will, a teenaged Obi-Wan Kenobi. But why help their shared enemy, when they can work together to escape?
Rec: I absolutely adore this fic. It explores its multiple gen relationships with so much complexity. It fully depicts the complicated situation of a warring people and the philosophy of how to live your life well, when you have the power to change things.
Content warnings: Graphic violence and injury, torture, captivity, past genocide, supernatural haunting, depictions of war, drug addiction, unhealthy relationships, former and current child soldiers

“Eddie Kaspbrak, Office Uncle Extraordinaire” by kyaticlikestea. 19K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: It (Movies); Ship: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Recced by: Izzy
Backstory: This is an office/regular people AU; no ancient clown aliens/no knowledge of canon is needed. The main character OC is kinda crushing on his mysterious and cranky coworker, Eddie Kaspbrak (and is increasingly curious about Eddie’s even more mysterious spouse). In an attempt to learn more, he convinces Eddie and his spouse to come to a work party.
Rec: This is a great time. Outsiders witnessing the incredible duo that is Eddie and Richie for the first time is so much fun.
Content warnings: Annoying coworkers

“can’t wait for gravity to bring you close to me” by Rhovanel. 5.4K words, rated Teen.
Fandom: For All Mankind; Ship: Molly Cobb/Margo Madison
Recced by: thelittlestbird
Backstory: For All Mankind is an alternate history of the space race where the Soviet Union landed on the moon first, NASA kept its women’s astronaut program and sped up its research, and the Cold War lasted longer. Molly Cobb is a badass astronaut who switched to ground crew after losing her sight; Margo Madison the head of Johnson Space Center, a brilliant engineer who got mixed up in intrigue with the Soviets.
Rec: This was my Yuletide gift for 2023, when I pleaded for a story to fix the end of S3 of For All Mankind to give a happier ending to my two favorite characters. This story captures Molly and Margo’s voices beautifully, quirks and prickles and all. It shows them being fabulously competent, both individually and as a partnership; and the intimacy between them grows so naturally that it feels inevitable.
Content warnings: Assumes knowledge of (and thus gives oblique spoilers for) everything through the end of S3

And a vid

“Weight of Living, pt. 1” by helcinda. 3:23, rated Gen.
Fandom: Heated Rivalry (TV); Ship: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov
Recced by: AirgiodSLV
Backstory: Shane Hollander is under immense pressure as a hockey prodigy and minority player in a majority-White sport. This piece explores his isolation, anxiety, and desperate attempts to conform to the life he thinks he ‘should’ be living.
Rec: There’s such a strong narrative in this video, distinctly showing aspects of Shane’s life like the teammate who's already married with kids, the girlfriend that the media believes is perfect for him, and the mother dedicated to seeing him succeed. It also captures a lot of the deliberate visual parallels from the show, and perfectly times those shots with the emotional punch of the music, including Ilya’s framing as Shane’s sun.
Content warnings: N/A

"this fic will only be 10k" and other lies i tell myself

— muse ✨ (@muse.bsky.social) August 13, 2026 at 8:37 PM

FINAL THOUGHT

For any DC Comics/Green Lantern fans in our readership: I’m going to be recapping HBO’s Lanterns for Fansplaining, starting with episode 1 on Sunday! Excited to get stuck into a very different kind of show after our coverage of The Vampire Lestat.

Have a great weekend, everyone! — Gav